Four months ago, I decided to find a place to rent that would serve as my work place. My interior decorating hobby became a full time job and I had to find someone who could help me with the project details and management. It was also getting hard for me to concentrate when I work at home because of my two growing “makulit” kids, so an “office” now makes sense. Anyway, I was able to find an unfurnished condo unit very near our place. Initially, the space looked too lonely and dark for me and I just had to inject a lot of Michelle touches in it.

First off the list is changing the countertop of the kitchen. See that huge brown spot that is almost the size of the whole countertop (left photo)? That was water stain. Cheap granite slabs are so porous that are prone to ugly water stains, making your countertop look perpetually dirty. 🙁 On the right is the new one where we used 60×60 white granite tiles (Brand: Sol from Wilcon Depot). Granite tile is a durable and affordable option if you need to update your kitchen countertop. I usually do this in my condo projects. 🙂 Doesn’t it look much, much cleaner? Now all it needs is a backsplash that would add some personality to the unit.

I originally planned to handpaint a pattern on it since this is a rental property and I can’t really have anything permanent (except for the countertop which I asked for the landlady’s permission, hehe!) But then Stiles.ph contacted me about their sticker tiles and I knew I had to try it myself since a lot of you, DIYers would find this interesting too. 🙂

Basically, it works like regular sticker. You would have to peel the protective covering at the back and just stick it on the wall! I think this is perfect if your rental unit doesn’t have any backsplash since you can totally do this yourself. When you move out, just peel the tile using a hair dryer to easily loosen up the adhesive and minimize wall damage.

The size is almost the same as typical mosaic tiles you can buy from home depots so laying it out is easy too. First, I cut off the excess tiles on the bottom and left part so that it would align on the wall and countertop. I used an X-acto knife initially but resorted to scissors on the later part because it’s easier for me. Haha!

By the way, please make sure that your wall is clean, free from dust or oil smudges, so the sticker would stick well.

The instruction from Stiles actually said to measure the wall first and draw where each tile would be installed. I personally find it hard because my kitchen wall is quite crooked, so I had to just test how each tile would fit on top of the existing one before taking the protective backing paper off.

See? I was hard at work trying to keep the “grout” lines even. Hehe!

If you have an outlet, simply cut the edges using a cutter and ruler. Not my hand though! I must admit that I did ask for a little help installing the tiles, but only in challenging corners like this, not because I can’t but because I was feeling lazy. And I had to take photos! Haha!

Same with the panel box, just slice the edges off using a sharp knife or cutter. 🙂

And here is my finished backsplash, TAADAAA! 😀 I finished it in about 4.5 hours. There was an “un-tiled” space left on the top because I ran out of sheets. I’m planning to do something about that soon… when I find the time. 😀

It really does look like real tiles. It’s heat resistant too so it’s safe to use even if you have a stove. It’s water proof and can easily be cleaned. Trust me, it always gets splashed with acrylic paint, sometimes spaghetti sauce, but it still looks pristine. It has been up on my wall for about three months now and it shows no sign of peeling off. Totally worth it!

The cost per sheet is P110-120, almost the price of cheaper mosaic tiles, but less the labor cost, tile adhesive and grout cost. It can even be used in the bathroom or even as accent wall in the dining and living area.

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When working on small units, I always try to make it look larger than it really is. As always, light color and a huge wall mirror never fail me. This particular SMDC Jazz unit is bigger than the typical ones I’ve worked on before because it is an end unit. If you noticed, the space is wider as there is an extra wall after the kitchen countertop and the main door. But the layout is generally just the same and adding more storage in the living room isn’t possible because of the huge column in the middle.

Anyway, here’s what I came up with. Something neutral which the future tenants can customize by changing the pillow covers or changing the artworks.

By the way, sorry for the fish eye photos. I just got my GoPro back then and was too eager to try it out that I forgot to take proper photos from my DSLR. Hehe!

The sofa has drawers and can be converted into a sofa bed. It also has a storage ottoman but it is too short to use it to make the sofa into an L-shaped one. (Don’t trust my photo. I just moved it forward to make it look L-shaped, but there really is a big space behind it!) I got them from Furniture Source just in case you’re wondering. 🙂The white bricks is just wallpaper but I love, love its 3D effect! 😀The roomy kitchen!And the bedroom! There is a white upholstered leather headboard but I accidentally deleted that one photo of it! :'(

That’s a custom storage ottoman with caster so the tenants can easily move it to the living area in case they need a foot stool or an extra table.

And once again, the living room view. 😀

And of course, the bathroom…Should you wish to have your unit decorated too for leasing purpose, kindly fill up this INQUIRY FORM.

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Last June 9, I attended SB Furniture Collection Launch and Showroom Tour in Bonifacio Global City. I have heard of SB Furniture before but never really considered it for my condo projects. I thought this was just another department store brand that wouldn’t last long, but I was proved wrong after the event.

Whenever I design, I always consider the durability and flexibility of the pieces that I choose. As a designer, my clients trust me on choosing good quality furniture without going beyond the budget and so I try to avoid those that are made from low quality MDF that warp over time. When I saw SB Furniture’s items, I know that I will now keep their catalogs for my future projects. There is a wide variety of designs that may go with almost any themes you have in mind.

As SB Furniture Merchandising Manager Jackson Cue said:“We at SB Furniture understand how personal the home is, so we make sure to help customers get a home that reflects their personality and preferences through extensive product lines that consider varied needs and home themes.”

I personally love their hanging cabinets which you can combine to create bigger storage. The white cabinets above are sized 120 x 30 x 40cm which is perfect as media cabinet, an overhead shelf above the bed or even a storage console table along the hallway.If you are looking for something Scandinavian in theme, they also have furniture in light oak wood finish. Should you prefer something more classic, the Spazio Collection may be for you. The clean lines in dark wood finish adds elegance to your space.For your sweet tween daughter, the Patisia Collection may be something she would fall in love with. One of my client’s daughter actually wanted a pink bedroom like this one. Hehe!

SB Furniture’s showrooms and stores are located in Bonifacio Global City (in photo), Makati, Alabang, Ortigas, Quezon City, Sta. Rosa, and Pampanga. For more information, please visit their website at http://www.sbfurniture.com.ph

We like for our customers to think of us as a friend and partner so we encourage you to share your vision with us. The consultation with our design specialists will help you get a clearer picture of how to maximize and lay-out your space. When you’ve selected what you want, we offer fast delivery and home installations – so you can actually get your dream home all in one day!

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